-

Dear Stan, I would like to say thank you so much to GulfWeekly and Anasuya Kesavan for supporting

Artlounge 2 at the Banyan Tree Hotel Spa and Resort, Al Areen in such a wonderful and extraordinary way.

I thank you very much for working together with me to give Artlounge 2 the needed publicity and spreading the word. I am very happy that the exhibition is going so well and that the opening was such a fantastic night.

Thanks a lot again and all my best wishes. (Right, a painting by Egytian-born artist Kareema Taha).

Marion Labani,

Art Lounge.

Dear Stan,

With reference to last week's Ask Betsy column, please note that Bahrain City Centre operates the kingdom's largest covered parking facility for the convenience of its visitors.

The centre has become an iconic destination for both visitors and residents since its launch in September.

We value our visitors' feedback in improving the centre and its facilities and as such we are working closely with the civic authorities to address the issues your column raised.

It is our intention to minimise the time it takes for vehicles to access the entry and exit points of the parking area, so please be assured these issues are being considered seriously and as a priority.

Bahrain City Centre.

Editor's note: Lots of people agreed with Betsy's correspondence, see their thoughts on Page 13, I'm sure they'll be glad to hear BCC is taking action.

Dear Stan,

I would prefer to pay BD5 for a safe sensible parking space than subject myself to the madness of the City Centre parking and lack of air-conditioning.

I also feel the approach ramp to the City Centre parking area is a potential danger spot. I have seen how the boy racers charge up there and it is only a matter of time before there is a collision and cars go over the wall which is far too low. I urge the management to look into this.

Peter J.

Dear Stan,

I have to agree wholeheartedly with Neil D'Silva's call for regulation in the building industry.

Every week another mammoth development is announced, multi-billion dinar figures are bandied about and yet, so far, there seems to be precious little to show for them.

It would be a good thing for developers to be aware, from the outset, that they are limited by law rather than just good practice.

It would also help to make Bahrain more attractive to international investors who are used to dealing in areas where there is a well established legal framework to guard against unforeseen circumstances.

I am sure with the current economic climate the kingdom's investment market would welcome any measure that would help attract outside cash and the fact the Bahrain's government is already looking at some form of regulation is very good news not just for large scale investors but, potentially, those who will be looking to buy homes on the island in the future.

D Jennings,

Adliya.

Dear Stan,

AS you are aware, the UK government has set about trying to restore liquidity by injecting capital in its banking system.

The programme is open to Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB, HBOS, Barclays, HSBC, Nationwide, Abbey National/ Santander and Standard Chartered Bank.

Standard Chartered Bank is very supportive of the decisive action to stabilise the UK banking system as a whole.

We continue to be well capitalised and highly liquid; we have no requirement to utilise the capital line available under this facility.

We operate in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, have no direct exposure to the US sub-prime market and continue to support our customers in what are challenging times for global markets.

Sam Gad,

External Communications,

Corporate Affairs,

Bur Dubai Al Mankool, UAE.